Stephen Kolek’s return to the Royals hit a snag Saturday, and now Kansas City is waiting on imaging to learn just how serious the latest setback is.
Kolek left his rehab start early with a right flexor strain after working 2 2/3 innings for Omaha. He was originally lined up for four innings or 65 pitches, but his outing ended at 51 pitches, with 30 strikes. The line: two runs on six hits, no walks, a hit batter and three strikeouts.
The trouble came in the third inning. After recording two outs, Kolek gave up two singles, hit a batter and then allowed a two-run single.
He later yanked a sweeper to Paul McIntosh, though there wasn’t an immediate reaction from him. Omaha pitching coach Dane Johnson then came out to the mound, signaled for a trainer and the Storm Chasers made a pitching change as Kolek exited with the trainer.
“He said he didn’t feel great playing catch, but then as he got on the mound, he felt better,” manager Matt Quatraro said Sunday morning. “The first couple of innings were pretty good.
In the third inning, he felt more aggressive discomfort. They thought it was best to get him out of there.”
The Royals plan to have Kolek undergo imaging on Monday to determine the severity of the strain and what comes next. On Sunday, Kansas City reinstated him from the restricted list/family medical emergency list and placed him on the 15-day injured list.
Kolek’s rehab outing was part of a carefully managed return after an extended absence tied to the birth of his daughter, Faye, who was born seven weeks premature on June 25. Outside of one start on July 1, Stephen had been in the hospital with Faye and his wife, Jessica. The Royals supported his time away, placing him on the family medical emergency list three times, the paternity list once when Faye was born and, most recently, the restricted list on July 11.
With Faye’s condition improving enough for Kolek to map out a return-to-play plan, the Royals set up Saturday’s start as a tune-up before he rejoined the rotation full-time. He had tried to keep up with his throwing program while away from the team, but it had been more than two weeks since his last start and nearly a month since he’d been on a normal starter’s routine. Kansas City wanted the outing to help bridge that gap and protect both Kolek’s arm and the club.
Because players on the restricted list usually aren’t eligible for a rehab assignment, the Royals went to Major League Baseball for permission given the unusual circumstances. They got the green light, only for the plan to be interrupted by the injury.
Now the Royals are left with more uncertainty around Kolek, and another pitching problem in a season where their depth has been tested over and over.
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